


You're Not Alone (I'll listen 'til your tears give out)

by maybe_we_were



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Birthday, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Hair Brushing, Hurt Wanda Maximoff, POV Natasha Romanov, Protective Steve Rogers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-26
Updated: 2016-05-26
Packaged: 2018-07-10 06:37:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6970201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maybe_we_were/pseuds/maybe_we_were
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Natasha wants to do something for Wanda's birthday, but things don't end the way she planned.  </p><p>AKA</p><p>Wanda is super upset about Pietro on her first birthday without him and Natasha finds out Steve was there to help her through it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You're Not Alone (I'll listen 'til your tears give out)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! I hope the weather has been looking nice for all of you. I feel like I have 80 different ideas and am having a hard time writing it all out. This one stuck out the most, though I know it might not be canon-compliant anymore. After seeing Civil War, I am still with the idea that Steve has taken on the big brother roll for Wanda. I especially enjoyed Hawkeye. :) 
> 
> As always, Marvel owns these guys.

The first time there is a chance to celebrate Wanda’s birthday, it’s at the Avengers base.

Natasha had grown close to the sorceress, being that they are the only two women on the team.  She decided the best way to celebrate was something low key, which, in this case, was a surprise dinner out and a cake that she ordered from the local bakery that was known for their sweets.

The day starts out as a relatively typical March day in upstate New York.  The weather itself is somewhat cloudy and chilly, but at least they aren’t expecting any snow or ice.  Natasha goes through her daily routine of a workout, target practice, and training one of the new members on the team (who, on that particular day, was Sam).  She finishes up around three, which gives her plenty of time to wash up and pick up Wanda’s cake.

She picks up the red velvet cake, as well as a few chocolate cupcakes, resisting the temptation of eating any of it, and arrives back at the compound shortly before four.

Walking into the kitchen, she hopes to sneak past Wanda, who is somewhere in the living quarters, in order to keep the cake a surprise.  Natasha sets the two boxes towards the back of the counter, careful not to jostle them.  Smiling at her success, she turns her head towards the living room, where she sees Steve.  Or rather, the back of his head.  It appears he is watching a movie, the volume relatively low for most ears, but not hers or his.  She first checks that everything is in order before she wanders over to him.

As she rounds the corner of the couch, he notices her.

“Hey,” he whispers.

“Hi,” she replies, equally as quiet.

It takes her a moment to process what she sees.  Their hushed tones are due to the sleeping Avenger she finds on the couch with Steve.  Wanda looks somewhat relaxed and peaceful, her head on a pillow that’s on Steve’s lap and a blanket covering her thin frame. Face unguarded, she looks much younger than she does when they are out kicking butt on missions.

She can feel Steve watching her assess the situation before taking a seat on the chair closest to him.  He must see the question in her eyes because he begins to explain.

“I came back from training and found her sitting here by herself,” he says, still whispering.  “She looked sad, which I can understand.  Today was hard for her, since they shared a birthday and this was her first without him.”

Steve’s fingers continue to comb through Wanda’s locks, a gesture he had probably been doing since before she sat down.

“She tried talking about some of their time together, but after a few minutes she got overwhelmed.  That’s how we ended up here.  She’s been out for a good half hour now.”

He glances down at Wanda with a look akin to brotherly affection.  Everything Steve said makes sense to her, and she feels bad that she missed that sort of detail.  Pietro and Wanda were twins, meaning that they shared not only a birthday, but numerous other things.  Natasha is glad that Steve was around, though, with how well he and Wanda have clicked.

“I feel horrible,” she confesses, “I completely forgot.  I brought home cake and I was going to take her out to dinner.” 

She lets out a sigh.

“Hey,” Steve says, capturing her attention, “don’t feel bad.  I bet she’ll love it.  That was really thoughtful of you.”

He then points to a red bag next to the couch that is overflowing with tissue paper.

“If it makes you feel any better, I got her something too.”

It does, in fact, make her feel better.  Leave it to Steve to always know the right thing to say.

“Well, it looks like neither of our plans are panning out the way we expected,” she says, gesturing to Wanda, who is still sleeping.

“Yeah, I’ll say,” Steve chuckles, “but I think it will get better with time.  Maybe when she wakes up, we can all go out for dinner.”

Natasha agrees, thinking the more people that join them, the less lonely Wanda will feel.  It’s then Natasha remembers the second box she brought back.

“While we’re waiting though, I have something for you.”

Steve’s eyes widen in surprise and he smiles, the corners of his mouth pulling up on each end.  It’s the same reaction she has when he brings home something he thinks she’ll like, either from the store, the mall, or a mission.

“Really?” he asks, in what sounds like curiosity.

“Mhmm,” she hums, and goes to the kitchen to retrieve the box of chocolate cupcakes.  She knows they are his favorite, as he told her at the last benefit they attended that had a dessert bar.  He doesn’t indulge too often, and neither does she, for that matter, but they looked too good to pass up.

“Mmmm,” he breathes out when she returns, a cupcake in each hand.  She hands him the one with the blue sprinkles on top and keeps the one with red sprinkles for herself. 

Steve opens his mouth wide and takes a huge bite, a few crumbs falling onto the couch.

“This is awesome,” he mumbles around his mouthful.

Natasha takes the time to take off the liner first, then tears off the bottom and places it on top to create a cupcake sandwich.  She then takes a bite and sighs appreciatively, enjoying hers as much as Steve is his.

She looks up at Steve, who has frosting on his nose, most likely from trying to eat the top first, and gestures that that he has something there.

“That,” he starts, before finishing off the last of his cupcake, “was smart.  I wouldn’t be a mess if I tried to eat it that way.”

He pauses briefly, wiping the frost off the tip of his nose. 

“Thank you.  That was my favorite kind of cupcake.”

She laughs because that was why she picked them out in the first place.  It’s become second nature to her, thinking about and sharing things that Steve might like.

“Glad you enjoyed it.”

They are silent for a few minutes while Natasha polishes off her remaining cupcake and licks her fingertips clean, watching the images flicker on the tv screen.

Steve clears his throat, which makes Natasha look back in his direction.  The hand that is running through Wanda’s hair pauses.  He hesitates for a moment, as if he’s checking to make sure he has her attention.

“Would you like to go out for dinner?”

Confused, a slight frown mars her face.

“I thought we already agreed on that.  Aren’t we going out when Wanda wakes up?”

“That’s not…I mean, yes, we are, for Wanda’s birthday,” he confirms, “but I meant-

His face grows a bit rosy and he looks away for a moment before looking at Natasha.

“Can I take you out to dinner? I wanted to ask a while ago, but…” he trails off, sounding almost apologetic.

The look he’s giving her is definitely not platonic.  What Wanda’s been telling her for weeks, that he has more than friendly feelings for her, must have some truth to it.  To say she isn’t excited at the idea of it would be a lie.

Typically, she would make Steve squirm, pretending to think it over, but the tone in his voice and the way he asked makes her answer immediately.

“Absolutely.  What took you so long to ask?” she smirks.

“Well, there are all of these new trainees around, so it’s been hard to get you alone.”

Although he’s joking, it’s sort of true.  Even now, they’re not really alone, though Wanda is unconscious. 

“But trust me, I’ll won’t wait next time.”

She heard everything he said, but it’s the promise of _next time_ that keeps replaying in her mind.

 

* * *

 

When Wanda wakes up a while later and sees the way they can’t keep their eyes off each other, she doesn’t say anything, simply goes about her normal business.  After they explain the plans for the evening, Wanda pulls her in for a hug as a thank you for thinking of her.  Wanda does the same with Steve and while they embrace, Natasha hears, “It’s about time.”  The sorceress probably thinks she was quiet enough for only Steve’s ears, but as Natasha’s eyes catch Steve’s over Wanda’s shoulder, they share a smile.

 


End file.
